We’re entering our 44th year of being a top sailing school in the World!

It’s Official! Spinnaker Sailing offers the lowest student to instructor ratio in the USA, only 2 students to 1 teacher on Basic Keelboat and 3 Students to 1 Teacher on Basic Coastal Cruising. We also have the youngest instructional fleet on the West Coast. Most schools are teaching on 50 year old boats, most of ours are less than 5 years old.

Our venerable Andrew’s 21’s offer a huge cockpit and a versatile sailplan that allows the boat to sail in the Bay’s blustery breezes with aplomb but equally important in the light zephyrs that are the norm during the morning hours. This allows the newly certified skipper to hone their skills with their crew in lighter winds when everything is easier but the boat still sails FAST!

Our Basic Coastal Cruising fleet of our incredible J/80’s are the perfect boat to sail in the Bay’s 20+ knot westerlies. On windy days they’ll even get up on the ’step,’ planning to speeds well over 10 knots!

We offer a unique take on the Bareboat Charter class (ASA 104 Intermediate Coastal Cruising) as our class is 4 full days that are itinerary driven. We teach on the fast and capable J/105 which is the perfect boat for sailing SF Bay.

Spinnaker Sailing is located at one of the Best Marinas on the West Coast, South Beach Harbor. This location is perfect as the breeze is fresh, the water is flat and it’s only 3 minutes from the boats berth to our teaching grounds…no long channels. The waters south of the Bay Bridge provide protection from the gusty breezes of the central Bay yet still offer winds in the 15-25 knot wind range, perfect for learning to sail on our performance instructional fleet.

South Beach is located in downtown San Francisco with plenty of easy parking and is centrally located in the famous San Francisco SOMA neighborhood. Dozens of restaurants, parks, and venues offer some fun ‘apres sailing’ options.

Our instructors are US Coast Guard Masters with dozens of years of teaching, sailing, and racing professionally. Many of our staff sail very actively on one or more racing programs throughout the West Coast. We offer a complete curriculum with a friendly and easy-going attitude. Sailing is huge fun…and so should learning TO sail!

We teach our students how to TEACH sailing. We are aware that upon graduation, they will be ambassadors of sailing. They won’t be taking seasoned sailors out with them…they’ll be taking family and friends, many of whom have never stepped on a boat before. We give our students the confidence and capability to safely sail on San Francisco Bay’s winds and currents with their loved ones, showing them the ropes and enjoying a fun adventure together.

Spinnaker Sailing is unique in our approach to boat ownership. We offer our Timeshare Sailing Program which has flat rates for 7 uses per month starting at only $599 mo (less than the cost of a berth). The boats are perfectly maintained and a delight to sail. There’s a maximum of 7 users per boat who treat her like she was their own. It’s as easy as showing up, going for a sail on a well-prepared, fully -serviced yacht, returning to a prime slip, hose her off, bus your trash and you’re done. We take care of all the nuances including regular detail cleaning, servicing the holding, fuel, and water tanks, and a full service regimen for the engine and all mechanical systems. Truly the best alternative to boat ownership!

Call Spinnaker Sailing – San Francisco to set up your lessons for the best first day of the rest of your life!